Woe is I: The Grammarphobe's Guide to Better English in Plain English

Front Cover
Putnam, 1995 - English language - 227 pages
From the Publisher: It's been called "possibly the most popular book on grammar ever published." Now the witty bestseller that took the nation by storm is back in a revised, expanded edition with new dos and don'ts from top to bottom. In this new Woe Is I, Patricia T. O'Conner displays the same fresh, irreverent humor that has charmed hundreds of thousands of readers. There are new chapters on spelling and pronunciation, and updates throughout. But you'll find the same down-to-earth explanations in clear, plain English-the same sensible solutions to the grammar mysteries that bug even the best of us. O'Conner manages to unscramble the most complicated problems in simple, easy to- swallow language. So you won't encounter the kind of intimidating terminology that made you want to skip your high school English class. This funny, wise, and indispensable guide shows readers how to: avoid the persistent grammatical errors that tie everyone-even presidents!- in knots watch their tongues and learn to pronounce commonly mangled words correctly use dozens of much-abused words and phrases Whatever your problem-intimidated by possessives? puzzled over pronouns? clueless about how to say "banal"?-the updated Woe Is I provides witty, jargon-free answers to all your questions about the basics as well as the subtleties of grammar, style, and usage. No wonder The Atlanta Journal-Constitution called O'Conner's classic "the best primer on English usage to come along since Strunk and White's The Elements of Style."

From inside the book

Contents

CHAPTER
3
Verbal Abuse
81
Comma Sutra
133
Copyright

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